Category Archives: Media

Israel shuts down local Al Jazeera offices in ‘dark day for the media’

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Foreign Press Association decries move under new law based on claim network is a threat to national security

Israeli authorities shut down the local offices of Al Jazeera on Sunday, hours after a government vote to use new laws to close the satellite news network’s operations in the country.

Critics called the move, which comes as faltering indirect ceasefire negotiations between Israel and Hamas continue, a “dark day for the media” and raised new concerns about the attitude to free speech of Benjamin Netanyahu’s hardline government.

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‘News on Facebook is dead’: memes replace Australian media posts as Meta turns off the tap

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Analysis of Facebook data finds engagement with news is at an all-time low – due at least in part to changes to Meta’s algorithms

Meta has refused to enter into new deals with Australian media publishers for the use of their content on Facebook, leading to fears it may again implement a ban on news content appearing on the platform. But an analysis of Facebook data suggests engagement with posts from news organisations is already at an all-time low, as memes fill the space.

Meta has argued that news makes up just 3% of what people engage with on its services.

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Ofcom accused of ‘excluding’ bereaved parents from online safety consultation

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The UK regulator has been criticised by grieving families and internet abuse survivors for failing to engage with them

Bereaved parents and abuse survivors who have endured years of “preventable, life-changing harm” linked to social media say they have been denied a voice in official discussions about holding tech firms to account.

Mariano Janin, whose ­daughter Mia, 14, killed herself after online bullying, and the parents of Oliver Stephens, 13, who was murdered after a dispute on social media, are among those who have accused Ofcom of excluding them from a ­consultation process for tackling online harms.

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Number of writers jailed in China exceeds 100 for first time, says report

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Freedom to Write index says there are 107 people in prison for published content in China, with many accused of ‘picking quarrels’

The number of writers jailed in China has surpassed 100, with nearly half imprisoned for online expression.

The grim milestone is revealed in the 2023 Freedom to Write index, a report compiled by Pen America, published on Wednesday.

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Bruce Lehrmann granted extension to consider appeal of defamation ruling in Network Ten case

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Justice Michael Lee labels Ten lawyer’s comments outside court following judgment ‘discourteous’ and ‘misleading’

Bruce Lehrmann has been granted an extension of time to consider an appeal at a federal court hearing which saw Network Ten’s conduct outside the court, after the judgment, described by Justice Michael Lee as “discourteous” and “misleading”.

Lee said Ten’s decision to offer comment outside his court minutes after the judgment was handed down had caused him concern, in particular the claim the network had been vindicated.

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Trump threatens to prosecute Bidens if he’s re-elected unless he gets immunity

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Time magazine called the ex-president’s plans ‘an imperial presidency that would reshape America and its role in the world’

Donald Trump has warned that Joe Biden and his family could face multiple criminal prosecutions once he leaves office unless the US supreme court awards Trump immunity in his own legal battles with the criminal justice system.

In a sweeping interview with Time magazine, Trump painted a startling picture of his second term, from how he would wield the justice department to hinting he may let states monitor pregnant women to enforce abortion laws.

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Fears of Putin swinging elections behind EU’s Meta crackdown

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Action against Facebook owner comes amid concerns about how it is dealing with fake news

Fears that Vladimir Putin is trying to fill the European parliament with more pro-Russia MEPs were behind the EU’s blunt message to the Silicon Valley owner of Facebook on Tuesday.

It gave Meta just five days to explain how it will root out fake news, fake websites and stop adverts funded by the Kremlin or face severe measures.

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EU to investigate Meta over election misinformation before June polls

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Brussels to act later this week against Facebook and Instagram owner over policies on deceptive advertising and political content, reports say

The EU is set to launch formal proceedings against Meta, the owner of Facebook and Instagram, amid concerns it is not doing enough to counter Russian disinformation before the EU elections in June, according to reports.

It is also expected to express concerns about the lack of effective monitoring of election content and a potentially inadequate mechanism for flagging illegal content.

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Burkina Faso bans more media over coverage of alleged massacre

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The Guardian and Le Monde among latest outlets blocked, following on from BBC and VOA last week

Authorities in Burkina Faso have suspended further foreign media over their reporting of an alleged massacre of hundreds of civilians by the Burkinabe army.

The decision was announced in a statement over the weekend, days after the military government suspended the BBC, Voice of America and the international watchdog Human Rights Watch (HRW), halting broadcasts and blocking websites, after the latter’s scathing report on Thursday.

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Two Russian journalists arrested over alleged work for Alexei Navalny foundation

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Konstantin Gabov and Sergey Karelin face at least two years’ jail on ‘extremism’ charges, which they deny, amid continuing crackdown on dissent

Two Russian journalists have been arrested on “extremism” charges and ordered by courts there to remain in custody pending investigation and trial on accusations of working for a group founded by the late Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny.

Konstantin Gabov and Sergey Karelin both denied the charges for which they will be detained for a minimum of two months before any trials begin. Each faces a minimum of two years in prison and a maximum of six years for alleged “participation in an extremist organisation”, according to Russian courts.

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Tory staff running network of anti-Ulez Facebook groups riddled with racism and abuse

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Investigation finds groups hosting Islamophobic attacks on London mayor Sadiq Khan, white supremacist slogans and antisemitic conspiracy theories

Conservative party staff and activists are secretly operating a network of Facebook groups that have become a hotbed of racism, misinformation and support for criminal damage.

An investigation has identified 36 groups that appear to be separate grassroots movements opposing the expansion of ultra-low emission zone (Ulez) schemes to reduce air pollution. They do not say they were set up by the Conservatives as part of a coordinated political campaign.

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Rageh Omaar receiving care after becoming unwell on air, ITV says

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International affairs editor became unwell while presenting News at Ten on Friday

The ITV News presenter Rageh Omaar is receiving medical care after becoming “unwell” live on-air, ITV has said.

The ITV News international affairs editor was presenting the News at Ten on Friday evening when he appeared shaky and to be having difficulty reading the news bulletins.

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Nigel Farage can host GB News show during election, says Ofcom

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Media regulator says no clear consensus among British public to ban politicians presenting on news channels

Nigel Farage will be allowed to present his nightly GB News programme throughout the general election campaign, Ofcom has confirmed, after the media regulator said there was no clear consensus among the British public to stop politicians presenting shows on news channels.

The founder of the Reform UK party, which has the backing of 10% of voters in opinion polls, will be allowed to keep broadcasting until polling day providing he does not stand as a parliamentary candidate.

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Bruce Lehrmann should pay Ten’s entire legal bill after ‘deliberately wicked’ decision to sue, network says

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In court submissions, Ten’s lawyers argue Lehrmann should indemnify the network for its legal costs, estimated at $8m

Bruce Lehrmann should pay all Network Ten’s legal costs because suing The Project for defamation was “deliberately wicked and calculated” and an abuse of process, Ten has told the federal court.

The former Liberal staffer lost the defamation case he brought against Ten and Lisa Wilkinson, with Justice Michael Lee finding that on the balance of probabilities Lehrmann raped Brittany Higgins on a minister’s couch in Parliament House in 2019.

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EU threatens TikTok Lite with ban over reward-to-watch feature

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App feature could be suspended unless child safety concerns addressed, in first use of sweeping new digital powers

The EU has said it will ban a new service launched by TikTok in Europe that it believes could be “as addictive as cigarettes” unless the company offers “compelling” fresh evidence that children are safeguarded.

If the ban goes ahead, it would be the first time the EU has used sweeping new powers to impose sanctions on social media companies since its landmark Digital Service Act (DSA) came into force last August.

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US journalist Terry Anderson, held hostage in Lebanon in 1980s, dies

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Former chief Middle East correspondent was longest-held western hostage of Shia Muslim groups during crisis

Terry Anderson, a US journalist who was held captive by Islamist militants for almost seven years in Lebanon and came to symbolise the plight of western hostages during the country’s 1975-90 civil war, has died aged 76, his daughter said.

The former chief Middle East correspondent for the Associated Press, who was the longest-held hostage of the scores of westerners abducted in Lebanon, died on Sunday at his home in Greenwood Lake, New York, said Sulome Anderson, who was born three months after her father was seized. No cause of death was given.

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Bolsonaro supporters hit streets of Rio and hail new hero Elon Musk

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Owner of X has used social media platform to bash judge in charge of investigations into former president

Thousands of diehard supporters of Brazil’s former president Jair Bolsonaro have hit the streets of Rio to champion their embattled leader and celebrate the new hero of their far-right movement: Elon Musk.

The tech billionaire has spent recent weeks using his social network X to bash Bolsonaro’s arch-enemy, the supreme court judge Alexandre de Moraes. Moraes is responsible for several investigations into Bolsonaro that could land the ex-president in jail, including one examining the alleged coup plot that preceded the rightwing insurrection in Brasília on 8 January 2023.

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Italian author accuses state broadcaster of censorship of antifascist monologue

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Outcry over cancellation of Antonio Scurati’s Rai talkshow appearance as note says move was taken ‘for editorial reasons’

A high-profile Italian author has accused Rai of censorship after his antifascist monologue was abruptly stopped from being aired, in what he called the “definitive demonstration” of alleged attempts by Giorgia Meloni’s government to wield its power over the state broadcaster.

Antonio Scurati was due to read the monologue marking the 25 April national holiday, which celebrates Italy’s liberation from fascism, on the Rai 3 talkshow Chesarà on Saturday night.

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War, grief and hope: the stories behind the World Press Photo award-winners

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Images from Gaza, Ukraine, Madagascar and the US border chosen by global jury from more than 60,000 entries

• World Press Photo winners 2024 – in pictures

Photographs documenting the wars in Gaza and Ukraine, migration, family and dementia have topped this year’s World Press Photo awards – one of the world’s most prestigious photography competitions.

Mohammed Salem, Lee-Ann Olwage, Alejandro Cegarra, and Julia Kochetova have been announced as the winners of this year’s competition, which is run by the World Press Photo Foundation – an independent, not-for-profit organisation that celebrates the importance of press and documentary photography.

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Seven CEO James Warburton departs network

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Media executive’s exit comes as broadcaster faces a number of controversies

James Warburton, the chief executive and managing director of Seven West Media, left the company on Thursday, amid a tumultuous period for the broadcaster.

The prominent media executive was due to step down before the end of the financial year, according to executive changes first announced late last year.

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